Fruit in Bloom!

Friday, February 17, 2012

The Natural Process...

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Here it is. Another set of random thoughts from a random woman living what may appear to be a random life! But, for those of us who believe in God, we know nothing is random. We have an ingenious Lord who has handcrafted an intricate lifetime for us to experience before ultimately rejoining Him in eternity. This is a breathtaking concept. And sometimes in the vastness of that concept we lose track of the simplicity of our current existence! So, this blog is dedicated to the Beauty of the Everyday.

There is a new trend today in becoming more "Natural" in how we live. From lifestyle to health & beauty....going natural is completely hip! At the risk of being a total wet blanket, I think it is a little TOO hip!! This realization came to me as I began having more conversations with other women who are pursuing more natural means of living. Especially in the beauty department. Black women and their hair have a cosmic connection that I don't think will ever totally be unravelled. I assumed that making the decision to stop processing one's hair stemmed from being ready to accept the brilliant design that God executed in you and work with it rather than against it. Ummm.....that does not seem to be the case!! Apparently, the point of "going natural" is to define your coils, open your curl pattern, fight shrinkage, and lay down your edges! At least, that is the drive of over 70% of the natural hair conversations that come my way! I spent some time in contemplation on this and the following is the best I could come up with:

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3 John 2:1 "Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul." ESV

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I think the key phrase is "as it goes well with your soul." In otherwords, as your soul is growing and bearing beautiful fruit, I pray that it spills over into your tangible life. I pray that your spiritual growth seeps through your pores and shows up in your physical being! How secure...how positive... how splendid is that?!

Are we really willing to radiate beauty on the outside not simply by buying a new product but by connecting with the beauty God is trying to cultivate in us? It isn't easy, but it is simple. There is a link between self-acceptance and then allowing God to do with the "self" whatever He likes. Not tailoring the "self" to what you "think" is beautiful. Yeah, Girlfriend. We are gonna do some work. Sure we will talk about all the ususal stuff...hair, skin, nails, kicks, threads, color....all the stuff that Black women love to pour tea over! But the REAL tea is this: Are we working so hard to create the beauty ourselves, or are we working hard to release the beauty within?